Corner guide and line supporting device for masonry constructions



Jan. 29, 1952 R. A. BAUMER 2,583,990

CORNER GUIDE AND LINE SUPPORTING DEvIcE: FOR MASONRY CONSTRUCTIONS FiledApril 21, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

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Jan. 29, 1952 R BAUMER 2,583,990

CORNER GUIDE AND LINE SUPPORTING DEVICE FOR MASONRY CONSTRUCTIONS FiledApril 21, 1950 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TO'R.

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Jan. 29, 1952 R. A. BAUMER CORNER GUIDE AND LINE SUPPORTING DEVICE FORMASONRY CONSTRUCTIONS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed April 21, 1950 INVENTORJ.

E! A TTUENE m Patented Jan. 29, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CORNERGUIDE AND LINE SUPPORTING DE- VICE FOR MASONRY CONSTRUCTIONS Richard A.Baumer, Huron, Ohio Application April 21, 1950, Serial No. 157,274

l Claims.

This invention relates to a corner guide and line supporting device, formasonry construction, which may be installed and removed readily fromthe worksite and, when installed, provides an accurate gauge for therunning wall and corners, yet lies wholly without the indicated lines ofthe wall to be built so as not to interfere in any manner with thelaying up of the running courses and corners thereof.

More specifically, the invention relates to a plurality of rigid cornerguides adapted to be accurately supported in upright position at allcorners of the foundation footing and, in turn, supporting a guide lineor string so as to outline completely the exterior of the wall andprovide an accurate gauge therefor and for the corners,

yet which do not overlie that part of the footing on which the wall isto be supported and do not interfere with the placing of blocks orbricks to form the wall.

Furthermore, the invention resides in the structure of the individualcorner guide and supporting devices, each of which comprises generally abase adapted to be positioned on the footing outside of the lines of theproposed wall with indicated portions of the base aligned with the linesof the wall, clamping means for clamping the base to ground stakeslocated outwardly beyond the footing so as to secure the base accuratelyin properly aligned position, an elongated upright rigid guide elementadapted to be supported in upright position on the base, interengageablepositioning means on the guide element and base adapted to interengageand posi- V tion the connected end of the guide in the proper positionand alignment with respect to the wall and corner lines, additionalmeans in the form of extensible legs connected to the guide elementprovided with bracing legs which are adapted to rest on the ground forresisting tilting of the guide out of plumb position. Other uprightguides of angular cross section have been used. these guides beingadapted to fit the corners of a wall and be secured thereto andsupported thereby. The latter guides necessitate the con- ;struction ofthe wall corners in advance of the running wall courses between thecorners. Guide lines are supported by such guides for the running wallcourses between previously constructed wall corners.

Other guides used are in the form of various types of levelling gaugeswhich are adapted to be held by hand in position to gauge the plumbnessand alignment of the corners and after the corners are set, guide linesor strings are fastened to and stretched between the previously builtcorners.

Generally all such devices are inconvenient to use and diificult toalign properly without interfering in any way with the laying up of thewalls, including the corners.

Due to the nature of prior devices for this purpose the customarypractice is to use skilled masons for laying up the corners of the wall,using hand levels and squares for assuring plumb and square cornerswhich are properly aligned for the running courses. These corners, whenbeing laid up, are maintained a few courses above the level of therunning wall courses: therebetween and a line or string is thenstretched between the partially built corners and the running walls arefilled in by less skilled masons or workmen. Since, in this method, theconstruction of the corners must always lead at least a few courses overthe construction of the wall therebetween the progress and quality ofthe construction depends largely upon the ability and speed of theskilled masons. The corner building by the use of hand levels andsquares is a rather slow and expensive process even when done by skilledmasons.

It is an object of the present invention to eliminate the necessity forthe laying up of Walls in the manner described and, instead, to providea guide and line supporting device which makes possible laying up ofwalls beginning either at the corners or at any desired point along therunning wall and laying up of a number of running courses and accurateand plumb corners concurrently by a large number of less skilledworkmen.

Another object is to provide a device for the purposes described whichis economical to produce, extremely rugged, and is easily installed andremoved for use.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent from the followingdescription of a preferred embodiment of the invention, whereinreference is made to the drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic perspective view illustrating afoundationfooting with a plurality of the devices of the presentinvention installed and supporting a guide line;

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of one of the corner guide and linesupporting devices showing the manner in which it is fastened inoperating position, part of the foundation footing being shown forclearness in illustration;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the installed device illustrated in Fig.2, part thereof being shown in section for clearness in illustration;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing a corner wall portion and footingwith the device installed in operating position relative thereto;

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic plan view showing the manner in which theguideand lines are arranged for outlining the foundation wall;

-Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevation, partly in section,illustrating one form, of universal connection between the guide elementof the device and its bracing legs Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary toplan view of the lower end portion of one of the bracing legs showingthe means for clamping the leg to a ground stake;

Fig. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevation of the lower endportion and clamping means of the leg illustrated in Fig. 7;

9 is a top plan view of a corner of a foundation footing showing apreferred type of base plate of the device, installed on the foundationfooting prior to installation of the guide element;

Fig. 10 is an enlargedfragmentary side elevation of the upper end of theguide element of the device, showing a modified form of universalconnection between the guide element and its bracing legs; and

Fig. 11 is an enlarged fragmentary rear elevation, of the. guide elementwith a guide line and connecting clips for the guide lineinstalled;

Referringfirst to Fig. 1, a foundation footing F having both inside andoutside corners is illustrated, the outer wall line of the proposedfoundation wall being indicated by the dotted line. W. A. plurality ofthe corner guide and line supporting devices, each indicated generallyat I, are set. up, one at each indicated corner of the wall, and theguide line or string 2 is secured to .eachv and thus indicates the lineof the entire outer wall surface of the proposed foundation wall. As iscommon in masonry foundation walls, the footing F is considerably widerthan the thickness of the, proposed wall and extends beyond the line ofthe proposed wall both outwardly and inwardly, The devices I areinstalled at the indicated corners outside of the wall line W and insuch a manner as not to interfere with the laying up of the corners ofrunning wall courses. The devices are anchored andbraced so that theupright guide elements thereof are plumb with their sides aligned withthe proposed wall, and the guide elements are adjusted verticallyrelative to the footing F so that, when the guide line 2 is connected tothe and maintaining the corners during construction several courseshigherthan the intervening running wall, the running wall and cornerscan be laid up concurrently, the workmen beginning the laying up of thewall at any desired position along the footing, gauging the corners bythe corner guide as they are laid up.

Referring next to the illustrated structure of an individual one of thedevices I and the manher in which it is installed on the footing, eachdevice I comprises a base 3, preferably in the form of a plate, which isadapted to rest in substantially horizontal position upon the footing F.The base'or plate 3, at one end, is shaped to provide a point 4, as bestillustrated in Fig. 9, with the edges 5 of the pointed end diverging atright angles to each other and providing suitable guides for assistingin the proper location of the base or plate 3 with respect to the cornerof thewall. line W. The base 3 is laid on the footing outside of thewall line W with the guiding edges 5 thereof aligned, respectively, withthe portions of the wall line W defining the associated corner of thewall. The base 3 is of such a length that when the point 4 is at thecorner point of thewall and the edges 5 are aligned with the wall linesdefining the corner, the base 3 extends outwardly beyond the outercorner of the footing F. The base 3 is provided with suitable means forclamping it securely to ground stakes and the like, such as the ironrods indicated at S which are driven firmly into the ground inapproximate position outwardly beyond the footing. In the formillustrated, the means for clampingthe base 3 firmly to the stakesS soas to retain it accurately in position may comprise suitable holes 6 inthe base 3 which are adapted to receive the stakes S with someclearance, and clamps I carried on the plate and arranged in position toengagethe upper portions of the stakes S which extend through the plate.Economical clamps may be provided by welding threaded nuts 8 to the base3 with their axes horizontal and intersecting the axes of the respectiveholes 3, and providing screws 9 in threaded engagement with the stakes.The screws 9 preferably are located close to the plane of the top of theholes and, if desired, suitable lugs It) may be secured on the top'surface of the base 3 at the opposite side of the holes 6 from the nuts8 so as to form a buttress against which the protruding ends of thestakes may be pressed firmly by the screws 9. Since the remainder of thedevices is readily detachable from the plate 3, the plate may beconveniently andaccurately installed and firmly anchored in properposition.

The device 1 includes a guide element ll adapted to be Supported inupright position on the plate 3. The guide element II is preferably anelongated and extremely rigid member and is arranged to be detachablyconnected to the plate, 3 at its lower end. In the form illustrated,

the guide is in the form of a steel structural angle of right angularcross section and is supported in upright position on the plate 3 withits sides coplanar with the guiding edges 5, respectively, and thevertex of its base substantially directly above the point 4. Thus thesides of the guide element ll extend outwardly from the wall line W soas to lie above the base 3 and not in any manner overhang theestablished wall line W.

In order to detachably support the guide element H in upright positionon the base 3 and maintain it with its lower end substantially'inalignment vertically with such predetermined portion of. the base 3 thatthe vertex of the lower end is above the point 4 and the sides arecoplanarwith the, edges 5, interengageable positioning means areprovided at the lower end of the guide element II and on the base 3,respectively. Suitable interengageable means are 11- lustrated in thedrawings and are provided as follows:

On the lower end of the element II is a flange plate I2 which isconnected to the lower end for movement therewith. Preferably thisconnection is rigid and may be provided by welding. The plate I2 isprovided with apertures I3 which are adapted to receive upright pins orlugs Mwhich are fixedly mounted on the plate or base 3. The pins I4engage the apertures I3 with slight operating clearance so that, whenthe pins are engaged with the apertures, the plate I2 and the guideelement II are constrained fromrbodily movement transversely of the base3 while the guide II is free to rock about its lower end, at least to alimited extent, into and out of upright position. The pins I4 andapertures I3 are so arranged that when the pins are received in theapertures the vertex of the bottom of the guide element liessubstantially directly above the intersection of the edges 5 and, whenthe guide is vertical, the sides thereof are coplanar with the edges 5,respectively.

Mounted in the plate I2 is a suitable manually operable adjusting screwl5 which is spaced from the apertures I3 and engages the upper surfaceof the base 3 so that, by rotating the screw, the

guide element II can be raised and lowered as a unit while its lower endis maintained in proper alignment'with the base 3.

In order to maintain the guide element II in plumb position, extensiblelegs I6 :are provided.

In the form illustrated each leg comprises a rigid rod [1 telescopicallyreceived in a suitable sleeve 'I8, a set screw I9 being provided forsecuring the rod and sleeve in the desired extended or retractedcondition.

end of each leg for connecting the lower end in fixed position relativeto the ground or other support. Since it is desirable that the legs beoutside of the wall line and outwardly beyond the footing, in generalpractice it is desirable that each leg be arranged to be connected to asuitable ground stake, such as indicated at G. For providing a firmconnection therewith the lower end of each leg IB is provided with aclamp in the form of an eye 25 adapted to receive the stake and a setscrew 28 for clamping the stake firmly in the eye. The eye 25 isconnected to the leg I6 for swinging movement relative thereto,preferably by means of a hinged connection, as indicated at 21, whichpermits the eye 25 to be swung upwardly and downwardly.

By virtue of the universal connection of the legs IS with the guideelement II, they can be disposed in the proper position to firmly bracethe guide in plumb position either on outside or inside corners. Asillustrated in Fig. 4, wherein the device I is used for an outsidecorner, the legs I6 are positioned to engage the ground alongside thewall rather than rearwardly oftheguide away from the wall so as toeffectively resist movement of theguide element out of plumb position bythetension of the guide line-2. T

angle forming the guide element II.

Instead of the'universal joint illustrated in Figs. 1 through 6, theuniversal joint illustrated in Fig. 10 may be used. In this modificationthe guide element 28, which is essentially the same as the guide elementII, is provided with a top plate 29 corresponding to the plate 2I. Tothe plate 29 are attached a pair of straps 30, each of which is hingedlyconnected, as at 3|, to an intermediate strap 32. The strap 32 in turnis hingedly connected, as indicated at 33, to a strap 34 which isfittedly secured to the upper end of the leg 35, which lattercorresponds with the leg IS. The hinge axes of the straps of each legare at right angles to each other. Thisuniversal connection is veryeconomical and inexpensive but is not as desirable as the ball andsocket universal connection heretofore described.

The plumb position of the guide element II may be gauged in numerousways. Preferably, however, for this purpose the plate H is provided witha notch 36 which leads into an aperture 31. The flange plate I2 isprovided on its upper surface with an indicating mark 38 which is sopositioned relative to the aperture 31 that the line defined by theaperture and the mark 38 are parallel to the intersection of the sidesof the Thus by securing the string of a plumb bob 39 in the aperture 31,the plumb position of the guide element I I can be indicated by thecentering of the plumb bob on the indicating mark 38.

When the device is installed for use as described, the intersection ofthe two sides of the guide element II are substantially coplanar withthe walls to be gauged thereby. Accordingly, when the string or guideline 2 is drawn across corresponding side walls of two adjacent guideelements II, lies directly above the wall line W. For obtaining theproper elevation of the guide line 2 and retaining it at the desiredlevel, suitable means are provided on the guide elements II foranchoring the line at spaced points therealong. Preferably, as bestillustrated. in Fig. 11, these means are in the form of horizontalnotches 40 which may be spaced apart from each other lengthwise of theguide distances which are multiples of the thickness of the runningcourses of the wall. Corresponding notches 40 of the respective guideelements are brought to the level ofthe top of the first course of thewall by adjusting the guide elements vertically by means of the screwI5.

In order to anchor the line to the guide suitable clips M are provided,these being in the form of fiat pieces of metal with notches, asindicated at 42, for receiving the line. The line is passed through thedesired notch 40 to the inside of the guide element, then inserted inthe notch 42 of the clip 4|, then drawn tight and wrapped once aroundthe clip-4| while tight, after which the clip is permitted to be drawnfirmly against the inside wall of the guide element by tension of theline 2, whereby it remains in said position and in turn anchors the linefirmly.

As illustrated in Fig. 5 a number of the devices have been set up anddrawn to plumb position. The line 2 is secured to one guide as indicatedat 43 and passed successively around the guides as indicated by thearrows in Fig. 5, preferably being anchored at each guide by means ofthe clips M and allowing a considerable length of slack line between thetwo clips of each guide element.

' therebetween.

ened, and broken lengths of. line 2between. two adjacent guide elementscan be detachedreadily and repaired. Likewise, the length between anytwo adjacent guide elements can be moved-- to a different level than thelength between other guideelements without disturbing the line for thecourses between the latter, guide elements.

It is apparent from the examination of the drawings and the abovedescription that they wall Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A device for the purposes described and comprising a base plateadapted to rest in predetermined position on a foundation footing,clamping means on the base and operable to clamp the base plate firmlyto a stake adjacent the footing when the base plate is in said position,a rigid elongated guide element adapted to be supported at its lower endby the base plate in approximately upright position, interengageable,positioning means on the guide element near said lower end and on thebase plate, respectively, and operable to detachably engage with eachother and hold the said lower end of the guide element substantially inalignment vertically with a predetermined portion of the base whileaffording limited rocking movement of the guide element into and out ofupright position,'bracing legs for the guide element, each leg beinginde pendently adjustable lengthwise, connecting, means respective tothe legs, each connecting means connecting its associated leg to theguide element in spaced relation abov the lower end thereof forgenerally universal pivotal movement with respect to the guide element,and each of said legs-being adapted to extend outwardly from itsconnecting means beyond the lateral limits of the base plate when theguide element is mounted thereon. i

2. A device according to claim 1 characterized in that adjustmentmeans'are provided which are operatively connected with the guideelementand base and are operable manually tomove the guide elementvertically to different adjusted positions while the lower end of theguide element is maintained substantially in said predetermined verticalalignment. I

3'. A device according to claim 1 characterized in that means areprovided on the guide element for receiving a guide line and are'adaptedto retain the line at a predetermined elevation thereon.

4. A device according to claim 1 characterized in that additionalclamping meansar provided onthe lower ends of the legs, respectively,each of the additional clamping means being adapted for detachablyconnecting its associated leg firmly to a stake.

5. A device according to claiml4 characterized in that each of saidadditional clamping means is swingably connected to its associatedleg.

6. A device for the purposes described comprising a-base plate adaptedto rest in substantially horizontal position on a foundation footing andhaving a corner-indicating, portionpadaptedl to lie-at, the proposedcorne of the. wall tobe constructed. on said footing, a plurality ofclamp means on the plate spaced from said portion and adapted for firmlydetachably clamping the plate to I a plurality of. stakes, respectively,adjacent the footing while the plate is in said position, an elongatedguideelement, a flange plateconnected to, the lower endof theguideelement, a plurality Otupright pins'on one plate, pin receiving means.

on the other, plate for receivin the pins endwise and positioned toreceive their associatedpins concurrently when the said lower end of theguide element is moved toward the bas plate while, the guiding edgeofthe guide element is substantiallyin alignment vertically with saidcornereindicating portion, said pins and pin re-t ceiving meansinterfitting to retain the lower; end of. theguide'element in saidalignment whileaffording limited rocking movement of the guideelement.thereaboutinto andout of upright position, bracing legs for theguide element, each leg being; independently adjustable lengthwise,connecting means respective to the legs, each 'connecting means.connecting its associated leg to the guide element in spaced relationabove the lower end thereof for generally universal pivotal move ofsaid'legs being adapted to extend outwardly from the connecting'meansbeyond the lateral limits of the base plate when the guideelement ismounted thereon.

7. A device according to claim 6 characterized in that said guideelement is in the formv of an elongated structural metal angle havingsides diverging at ninety degrees to each other.

8. Adevice according to claim '7 further characterized in that saidcorner-indicating meansis the intersection of two edges of the baseplate and the lower end of the guide, element isv positioned by the pinsdirectly above the base plate with the intersection of thesides of thguide element in substantially vertical alignment with the intersectionof said edges;

9. A device for the purposes described comprising abase plate having twoedgesintersecting at right angles to eachother, theintersectionproviding a corner indicator, a plurality of detachableclamp means on the plate adapted to clamp the plate firmly to aplurality of stakes, respectively, a rigid elongated guide elementofright angle cross section, cooperable detachable positioning elements infixedpositions on the guide element and p1ate,respectively, andinterengageable with each other by movement of th guide element endwisetoward the base plate while the positioningelements. are alignedvertically, and operative when interengaged, to maintain the lower endof the guide element with the intersection of the sides substantially invertical alignment with the intersection of the said edges'and V withthe sides or" the guide element overhanging the baseplate and coplanarwith said edges, re-

10 flange plate on the lower end of th guide element UNITED STATESPATENTS and having a pair of apertures, a pair of upright Number NameDate p s on the base plate receivable in said aper- 1 643 915 AngemuSept 27 1927 tu s. and positioned between said corner in- 1897682souders 1933 i r of the base plate and said clamping 5 1 Golt May 1933means, and an upright adjusting screw is car- 2143237 Bymes Jan 1939ried by the flange plate at a position between the intersection of thesides of the guide element FOREIGN N S and the apertures and is exposedat its upper Number Country Date end above the flange plate for accessfor rotation 10 532,394 r at Britain Dec. 2, 1946 and at its lower endit engages the base plate.

RICHARD A. BAUMER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the 1 file ofthis patent:

